Oil and gas hydrocarbons are naturally occurring in some subterranean formations. During drilling operations, a drilling fluid, which may also be referred to as drilling mud, is circulated through the wellbore to cool the drill bit, to convey rock cuttings to the surface, or to support the wellbore against collapse of the wellbore and against intrusion of fluids from the formation, among other purposes. One type of drilling fluid includes packer fluids which are pumped into an annular opening between the casing and the wellbore wall or between adjacent and concentric strings of pipe extending into the wellbore. Packer fluids are also useful for the containment of reservoirs via hydrostatic pressure and reduction of the pressure gradient between the wellbore wall and casing to prevent wellbore collapse. In certain operations, packer fluids are also used to contact a packer, such as a swellable packer or bridge plug, and can be used for sand control, gravel packing, and workover operations. Drilling fluids, including packer fluids, are formulated to have certain fluid characteristics, such as density and rheology for example, which allow the drilling fluid to perform these functions.